Please be advised that on Saturday August 25, 2018, Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited will facilitate the delivery of Full Import containers (Full Container Loads) as well as the receival of empty containers between the hours of 8:00 am and 2:00 pm.
Kindly note that this arrangement is to facilitate an increase in our Domestic Operations volumes and will only be for the day and time(s) stated, unless otherwise specified.
Thank you for your cooperation.
As the world continues to observe “Plastic Free July,” Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) is reporting that in just six weeks since the launch of its environmental initiative, “KFTL Go Blue: Recycling Begins with you,” approximately 30,000 plastic bottles (or 970 lbs) have been separated for recycling by its over 1000 employees.
The campaign, which was launched on World Environment Day (June 5), features various initiatives to improve waste management, energy and resource conservation at the facility. This includes placing colour-coded bins in strategic locations across the terminal to facilitate separation of waste streams by staff and stakeholders. The separated waste is then collected by KFTL’s designated contractor, Recycling Partners of Jamaica.
“The support has been remarkable so far from both staff and stakeholders,” noted Christopher Gayle, Environmental Specialist at KFTL. “We are cognizant of the fact that waste separation practices are part of an overall behavioural change which is necessary for us to see real impact, so we will continue to raise awareness so that the efforts are seen not just on the port but also in our wider communities,” he added.
The major objective of the KFTL Go Blue initiative is to reduce the environmental footprint of KFTL’s operations through energy/resource conservation and recycling/ solid waste management.
In addition, KFTL has discontinued the supply of single-use plastic straws at its canteen facility and is progressing with plans to replace styrofoam food-ware with bio-degradable containers.
The Recycling Partners of Jamaica reported that between March 2014 and March 2017, it collected over 3.3 million pounds of plastic – or over 100 million plastic bottles – from the environment in Jamaica.
June 15, 2018 by Trevesa DasilvaKFTL
As Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) observes its two year anniversary on July 1, the company continues to implement its Environment and Social Management System (ESMS) aimed at reducing any potential negative impact of its operations on its stakeholders and surrounding communities. To this end, the company recently launched its environmental initiative called KFTL Go Blue under the theme “Recycling Begins with you.” The launch, which coincided with World Environment Day on June 5, featured various initiatives to improve waste management, energy and resource conservation.
Colour-coded bins have been placed in various locations of the terminal to facilitate separation of waste streams by staff and stakeholders. The separated waste will then be collected by designated recycling contractors. The company will also utilize various communication materials to help promote and encourage recycling practices. These materials will include a video, posters, signs and vehicle wraps. An environmental mural has also been painted on the wall near the company’s entrance to showcase KFTL’s commitment to pursue its business goals in harmony with the environment and stakeholders.
In addition, KFTL has discontinued the supply of single-use plastic straws at its canteen facility and is advancing plans to replace styrofoam food-ware with bio-degradable containers.
Earlier this year, KFTL reported that over 8,299 bags of garbage, comprising mainly plastics, were removed from the Refuge Cay mangroves in Kingston. This was part of a cleanup and restoration project sponsored by KFTL and executed by the University of the West Indies (UWI) Centre for Marine Sciences and the Port Royal Marine Laboratory.
KFTL has also sponsored the ‘Port Royal Cays Coral Reef Rehabilitation’ project, the implementation of which will begin in 2018, the International Year of the Reef, and will feature the design, installation and monitoring of artificial reef structures on the Port Royal Barrier Reef.
As millions across the globe observed World Earth Day on April 22nd under the theme “End Plastic Pollution,” Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) is reporting the removal of 8,299 bags of garbage, comprising mainly plastics, from the Refuge Cay mangroves in Kingston. This effort was the first phase of a cleanup and rehabilitation project sponsored by KFTL and executed by the University of the West Indies (UWI) Centre for Marine Sciences and the Port Royal Marine Laboratory. The cleaning started on January 8th 2018 and lasted 6 weeks.
In addition to the bags of garbage, other items cleared included 30 refrigerators, 13 cooking gas cylinders, five washing machines and over 50 tyres. Miscellaneous items such as car bumpers, crates, buckets, a scuba tank, nets, fishing lines and other small appliances were also removed.
The second phase of the project, the installation of barriers to prevent further garbage buildup on the Cay, was completed on March 23rd 2018. The third phase, which involves fisher folk removing garbage built up in the barriers on a monthly basis, commenced in April 2018; while the fourth phase, the replanting of mangrove saplings, is slated to begin in May 2018.
Following on these gains, KFTL has also commenced initiatives at its facility to help end plastic pollution. These include removing single-use plastic straws from its canteen and embarking on a recycling campaign, which will encourage staff to separate various waste streams, including plastic. Moreover, plans have been initiated to replace the company’s supply of styrofoam containers with bio-degradable alternatives.
Locally, the Recycling Partners of Jamaica reported that between March 2014 and March 2017, it recovered over 3.3 million pounds of plastics – or over 100 million bottles – from the environment in Jamaica. Meanwhile, according to the Earth Day Network, the organization that leads Earth Day observations worldwide, over 300 million tons of plastic are sold globally each year, 90% of which is thrown away.
The Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL), operator of the Kingston Container Terminal, has completed renovations on the first section of its South Berth and is ready to restart operations in that area.
The renovations, which include the reinforcement of over 1200 metres of the South Terminal, form part of the civil works aimed at upgrading the Terminal and are amongst several investment commitments KFTL made upon assuming responsibility of managing the facilities in July 2016.
The first 600 metres were completed under Section One (1) and the remaining 600 metres of the South Berth will be reconstructed under two additional sections and are expected to be completed by the end of 2018, all at a cost of approximately US $150 million.
Combined with the arrival of new gantry cranes and new cargo handling equipment, KFTL is increasing its capacity and ability to perform at the next level. With these improvements, KFTL will be able to facilitate larger vessels, which will translate to increased transshipment business for Jamaica.
“KFTL staff are excited about the additional capacity and stand ready to turn this opportunity into a success for the Kingston Hub,” noted new CEO, Johannes de Jong. He added that “these improvements could not have taken place without the support of the Port Authority of Jamaica and other stakeholders.”
The civil works is being executed by a consortium which includes Vinci Construction Grands Projects, EMCC and Sodraco and managed by Egis Ports Consultants on behalf of KFTL.
In addition to the completion of Section One (1) of the civil works upgrades, KFTL also completed upgrading of the nautical access in August 2017 after months of dredging to deepen the shipping channel. The achievement of these significant milestones now enables the Port of Kingston to accommodate, on the newly refurbished section, the new Panamax container vessels of up to 14,000 TEUs, which can now pass through the region following the recent expansion of the Panama Canal.
In February, over 60 students and teachers from two schools in the corporate area received an opportunity to learn about the importance of the biodiversity within the Kingston Harbour through a tour and field lecture at Refuge Cay and the University of the West Indies (UWI) Port Royal Marine Lab. The activity, which was sponsored by the Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) was carried out in partnership with UWI’s Centre for Marine Sciences.
The educational activity, which was held on February 2, in observance of World Wetlands Day 2018, under the theme, “Wetlands for a sustainable urban future,” also served to highlight some of the work being done to preserve wetlands in the Kingston Harbour. This includes the ‘Restoration and Cleanup of Refuge Cay Mangroves’ project, which is also being sponsored by KFTL and implemented in collaboration with UWI’s Port Royal Marine Lab and involves clean-up and re-planting activities at Refuge Cay.
Eleven year old, Zion Dowie, from Port Royal Primary school was elated to participate in the Refuge Cay tour. “It was an amazing experience to learn about the mangroves and I love how the workers are helping to get it cleaned. I want to encourage people to stop throwing garbage into the sea and into gullies and to throw them in garbage bags instead,” pleaded Dowie.
Moyen Campbell, Guidance Counsellor at the Harbour View Primary school and who was one of the teachers who accompanied the students, noted that “they were very receptive of the information and we will ensure they share with others at their school, the lessons learned about the importance of keeping their surroundings clean.”
The World Wetlands Day tour for students and the ‘Refuge Cay Mangroves Restoration and Cleanup’ project, are among several community outreach activities which KFTL sponsors as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility. KFTL has also sponsored another project which will benefit the Kingston Harbour – the ‘Port Royal Cays Coral Reef Rehabilitation,’ which will be implemented over a five year period and will feature the design, installation and monitoring of artificial reef structures on the Port Royal Barrier Reef.
February 2, 2018 by Trevesa DasilvaCSR
CMA CGM subsidiary in Jamaica, the Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) has once again displayed its environmental stewardship by sponsoring two projects that will improve the fisheries resource of the Kingston Harbour. The projects, the ‘Refuge Cay Mangrove Cleanup and Restoration’ and the ‘Port Royal Cays Coral Reef Rehabilitation,’ are being implemented in partnership with the University of the West Indies (UWI) Centre for Marine Sciences and the Port Royal Marine Laboratory.
Over 4,200 bags of garbage were collected over four weeks as part of the ‘Refuge Cay Mangrove Restoration’ project, since the cleaning began on January 8, 2018. Following the removal of the heavy build-up of solid waste from Refuge Cay, mangrove seedlings will be planted and garbage barriers installed to prevent further garbage build up. Any further garbage that gathers in the barriers will also be regularly removed and disposed.
In Jamaica, the Refuge Cay is home to numerous species of birds and also serves as a nursery area and feeding ground for a variety of fish species. Over the years, a large quantity of garbage accumulated on the cay which limited the flushing of sea water through the mangroves. Consequently, the cay became hypersaline causing a “dead zone” to develop at its centre. Since the cay has never been cleaned, this project is of major significance and is intended to be a catalyst for similar initiatives.
According to Professor of Marine Biology, Mona Webber, PhD., who is also Director at the Centre for Marine Sciences at UWI, “mangroves are natural filters cleaning our waters, they remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (helping to mitigate climate change) and they support birds and other wild life. It is therefore a tremendous partnership between KFTL, UWI and the men and women of Port Royal and Kingston Harbour who are trying to save an area on which we all depend.”
KFTL and UWI have also partnered on another project, the Port Royal Cays Coral Reef Rehabilitation, which will be implemented over a five year period and will feature the design, installation and monitoring of artificial reef structures on the Port Royal Barrier Reef. Preliminary diving visits have already been conducted.
According to Chanelle Fingal Robinson, PhD., Social Impact Specialist at KFTL, “both projects will not only benefit the environment but also financially benefit the Kingston Harbour fisherfolk through potentially creating alternative livelihoods such as ecotourism.” For the Refuge Cay project, for instance, over 20 persons from the Port Royal community, most of whom are fisherfolk, have been contracted to clean the area.
These two initiatives form part of KFTL’s wider Corporate Social Responsibility efforts and are aimed at enhancing the quality of the Kingston Harbour, which is the 7th largest natural harbour in the world.
November 10, 2017 by Trevesa DasilvaKFTL
The Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) is urging importers to immediately take delivery of their containers which have been on the port for extended periods of time.
There are currently 1,250 containers (2000 TEUs) waiting to be collected, with 31% having been on the terminal for up to a week, 38% for up to 14 days, and the remaining 31% for more than two weeks and up to three months. This has resulted in reduced efficiency of the loading equipment due to rehandling and increased waiting time for trucks taking delivery.
The Jamaica Customs Agency has also advised that a number of these containers have already been duty paid and custom cleared and are only awaiting collection. As such, KFTL is asking the relevant companies to contact its Gate Operations unit in the soonest possible time to make arrangements for collection.
KFTL also wishes to remind importers/exporters to schedule and honour appointments made for delivery, as over the past 3-4 weeks, there has been a decrease in the number of appointments made and honoured. Currently, there is an average of 30% of units shifted per day which are not being collected and are accumulating in the domestic area, which has also impeded service delivery.
KFTL remains committed to ensuring that its volumes and productivity levels continue to improve and seeks the continued cooperation of all relevant stakeholders in facilitating this.
The Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) has implemented additional changes to its gate operations following agreements reached during a series of meetings with the key stakeholders involved in the process. The changes took effect Monday, October 2, 2017.
Following a meeting held on Wednesday, September 27, 2017 among KFTL, the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ), Port Trailer Haulage Association (PTHA), the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA), the Custom Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association of Jamaica (CBFFAJ), and the Jamaica Society of Custom Brokers (JSCB), the following conditions were agreed on and have been implemented.
Other areas remain under review for subsequent meetings including the extension of the gate operational hours to facilitate increase in ‘seasonal’ volumes as well as the staggering of work hours for Jamaica Customs and PAJ Security. There are also plans to facilitate a change in direction of the fourth lane to facilitate an additional entry lane to the Terminal as well as to engage the National Works Agency (NWA) to change the current direction of the East to West lane.
Meanwhile, KFTL is also in the process of recruiting additional staff as well as increasing its fleet of equipment to help meet the demands of its operations and ensure greater efficiency.
September 30, 2017 by Trevesa DasilvaKFTL
The Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) has completed the capital dredging of the shipping channel within the Kingston Harbour. The dredging, which was scheduled to be completed in 9 months, was completed 1.5 months ahead of schedule and fulfilled all conditions outlined in its Environmental Permit issued by the National Environmental and Planning Agency (NEPA).
The dredging facilitated the deepening of the nautical access to allow the Port of Kingston to accommodate larger New Panamax container vessels, which will now be passing through the region following the recent expansion of the Panama Canal.
The final handover of the upgraded Nautical Access to the Port Authority will occur in the coming weeks pending the completion of verification surveys and the reinstatement of Navigational Aids.
KFTL, which is the new concessionaire for the Port of Kingston, started the dredging in January 2017 under the terms of its concessionary agreement with the Port Authority of Jamaica.
